Tourism is an important industry in Pierce County. Visitors come from all over the country and even all over the world to visit our mountain, golf our courses, kayak and fish our shores, visit our museums and fairs, and sample our rhubarb pie, Almond Roca, craft beers and distilled spirits.
The Economic Development Department administers the funds generated by the tourism industry in the form of taxes and fees paid on overnight stays. Two advisory boards recommend how these funds should be invested—the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee and the Tourism Promotion Area Commission.
New Tourism Funding Direction
As a result of the Pierce County Tourism Strategic planning process mentioned below, a new tourism funding direction has been launched. Pierce County’s tourism efforts are focused on generating incremental overnight stays through four key priorities. Projects submitted through the application process must support these four priorities:
- Drive Overnight Visitors — All funded programs must proactively generate overnight visitors
- Leverage Proven or Identified Demand Generators — All funded programs must incorporate and leverage the existing demand generators
- Focus on Specified Target Markets — All funded programs must include identified target markets and how the program will reach and convert them to overnight stays
- Balanced Funding Approach — 2019 Funding Allocations are: